On 24 November 2017, the Beyoglu district governor's office reportedly banned a one-day festival that had been set to showcase short films on gay issues on Saturday, claiming the event would not be allowed to take place, in a bid to ''protect public order and safety, others' rights and freedoms, and to prevent crime'' [R1.5].

On 19 November 2017, it was reported that the Ankara governor's office had banned all events by lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and intersex rights groups in its capital city to protect ''public security'' for an ''indefinite'' period with effect from 18 November [R1.4].

On 01 July 2017, it was reported that the Istanbul Governor's Office they will not allow the eighth Trans Pride March to take place Sunday, citing public order and the safety of participants and tourists. Last week, the governor's office banned the LGBTI pride parade for the third year [R1.3].

On 24 June 2017, it was reported that the Istanbul Governor's Office had banned an LGBTI pride parade scheduled to take place in Taksim on 25 June, citing security and public order concerns [R1.2].

On 17 June 2016, it was reported that the governor of the Turkish city of Istanbul had banned gay, lesbian and transgender individuals from holding pride parades at their usual venue, citing security concerns, disallowing marches departing from Istanbul's iconic Taksim Square ''for the safety of our citizens and the participants'' [R1.1].

On 22 November 2016, the European Court of Human Rights unanimously ruled that the seizure and confiscation of all copies of a magazine published by the Ankara-based LGBT rights group Kaos GL, for more than five years, violated freedom of expression [C2.3], [R2.2].

On 26 August 2013, the Istanbul Anatolian 14 Magistrates' Court decision CM 2013/406 ordered access to the Grindr application and website be blocked as a 'protection measure'. The order reportedly came into effect on 10 September 2013 [R2.1].

In 1996, the Turkish Supreme Court of Justice has ruled that a lesbian is a threat to the moral development of her child and have refused to uphold the decision of a lower court that granted the mother custody of her 2-year old daughter [R1.1].

The Supreme Court defined the lesbian mother as "a woman who has a (sexual) habit in the degree of sickness".

On 14 September 2012, it was reported that the Justice and Development Party (AKP) had vetoed a proposal jointly introduced by the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) and the Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) that would have brought in constitutional protection for gay rights [R1.3].

On 09 January 2012, it was reported that the High Court of Appeals, overturning lower court rulings, found the headline 'Üskül prefers perverts' insulted LGBT people, saying 'The freedom of the press does not encompass the freedom to insult the personal freedoms of individuals'.

In March 2010, it was reported that a board to prevent discrimination was going to be founded according to a draft law that the Interior Ministry recently completed under the government's move for democratization. The draft law includes sexual identity [R1.2].

In May 2009, a Turkish soccer referee was forced out of his job because of his sexuality he having been excused from his compulsory military service on account of his homosexuality [R1.1].

On 29 December 2015, an Istanbul Court ruled that Halil Ibrahim Dinçda was discriminated against by the Turkish Football Federation when a report of his exemption from military service due to his sexual orientation became known. The TFF said his dismissal was because those who do not complete their national military service due to 'diseases' cannot be a referee. The Court ordered the TFF to pay TL 23,000 ($7,900) in compensation [R2.6].

On 30 January 2015, it was reported that Judge Gönü Doāan ruled that Ahmet Karagüney, the owner of the Galatasara hamam, Turkish bath, in Istanbul is to pay 3,000 Turkish Liras for discriminating against a transgender woman by denying her entry in violation of Article 122 of the Turkish Penal Code that makes discrimination against people based on language, religion, gender, color, political thought, philosophical belief, sect or alike unlawful [R2.5].

On 02 January 2011, a criminal court in Bursa ruled that the Rainbow Association must shut down after claims by the local government that its members had engaged in prostitution [R2.4].

On 30 April 2010, Judge Mursel Ermis in the Izmir Court, rejected a demand sought by the governor's office to ban Siyah Pembe Ucgen (Black Pink Triangle), a group campaigning for gay rights [R2.3].

In January 2009, the Supreme Court of Appeals rejected the local court's decision to enforce closure of Lambda Istanbul on the grounds that reference to LGBT people in the name and the statute of the association did not constitute opposition to Turkish moral values [R2.2].

Previously:

In 2007, a demand to enforce closure of Lambda Istanbul, Turkey's leading GLBT organisation, was thwarted by a judge who ordered legal experts to compile a report [R2.1].

On 18 October 2010, international human rights groups were calling on officials in Turkey to drop charges against five transgender rights activists on trial this week for resisting arrest [R1.4].

On 22 February 2010, the IGLHRC reported an ongoing pattern of violence against transgender people that included a number of murders [R1.3].

In 1988, a specific law on Gender recognition after Gender Reassignment treatment was introduced [R1.2].

In 1997, it was reported that assault by the police is emblematic of the situation of transvestites and transsexuals in Istanbul, who have been routinely rounded up from their homes, beaten and evicted [R1.1].

On 01 July 2017, it was reported that the Istanbul Governor's Office they will not allow the eighth Trans Pride March to take place Sunday, citing public order and the safety of participants and tourists. Last week, the governor's office banned the LGBTI pride parade for the third year [R1.3].

On 30 November 2017, the Constitutional Court cancelled a controversial law requiring transgender individuals seeking sex change surgery to prove they are ''unable to procreate''. The verdict stems from an appeal by an applicant whose petition to obtain a female ID was rejected as she did not undergo a sex change surgery [R3.6].

On 10 March 2015, the European Court of Human Rights, in a unanimous judgment, ruled that a law requiring trans people be permanently infertile before they undergo treatment is incompatible with human rights. The ruling only specifically relates transgender man Y.Y. in Turkey though it may have wider implications [D3.5], [C3.4], [R3.3].

On 30 January 2015, it was reported that Judge Gönü Doāan ruled that Ahmet Karagüney, the owner of the Galatasara hamam, Turkish bath, in Istanbul is to pay 3,000 Turkish Liras for discriminating against a transgender woman by denying her entry in violation of Article 122 of the Turkish Penal Code that makes discrimination against people based on language, religion, gender, color, political thought, philosophical belief, sect or alike unlawful [R3.2].

On 21 October 2010 (quaere), the trial judge hearing charges of resisting arrest against five transgender activists dismissed the case, citing the lack of evidence against the defendants [R3.1].

Homosexuality was a known tradition in the era of Ottoman Empire which lasted more than five centuries [R1.3]. It is understood that the law is silent as to homosexuality and that as a consequence consensual sex between same-sex couples has been lawful in Turkey since 1858 [R1.2].

On 04 August 2016, it was reported that the headless, mutilated body of Muhammad Wisam Sankari was found in Yenikapi, a central district, on 25 July. No arrests have been made [R1.2].

In July 2008, a gay student activist is alleged to have been shot in what is believed to be Turkey's first reported gay "honour killing" carried out by members of his own family [R1.1].

2.

Courts & Tribunals

On 10 February 2014, Metin Çiçek, the father and uncles Seyhmus and Mehmut, were jailed for life for the 2012 'honour killing' of 17-year-old gay teenager Rosin Çiçek in the south-east city of Diyarbakir [R2.2].

On 18 February 2013, Judge Mahmut Erdeml in an Istanbul court of the first instance, delivered a landmark ruling saying that gay sex is natural, contradicting a previous ruling by Turkey's supreme court in 2012. The case concerned a trader prosecuted for violating article 262/2 of the Turkish penal code that prohibits owning, trafficking, distributing and publishing 'unnatural sex' videos. However, the Court did find DM guilty of 'unauthorized' selling of porn with a punishment of 8 months imprisonment [R2.1].

On 17 November 2015, it was reported that under amended pre-draft military regulations a homosexual can choose to disclose or not to disclose his identity. If he does, this declaration will constitute the sole basis for the doctor's decision on the potential conscriptee's draft exemption. Previously they had to prove their homosexuality by undergoing nude examinations and submitting photos of themselves engaged in homosexual intercourse. The 'Physical Capabilities Regulation' defines homosexuality as 'a psychosexual disorder' [R1.8].

On 08 January 2013, the Turkish government was reported to have submitted a new draft regulation for the Turkish Armed Forces that retains the article 'unnatural intercourse' which has been used to stigmatize and punish LGBT people [R1.7].

On 27 November 2012, according to media reports, homosexuality has been included as a major offense in the new discipline regulation draft of the Turkish Armed Forces. The punishment for offenders of the "crime", which was defined as "unnatural intimacy" in the draft, will be expulsion from the military [R1.6].

On 26 November 2012, Defense Minister İsmet Yılmaz was expected to introduce a new penalty regulation draft for the Turkish Armed Forces under which being gay will be considered as a serious offence and reason for dismissal, making the unwritten policy a regulation [R1.5].

On 26 March 2012, gay conscripts seeking to "prove" their homosexuality in order to avoid military service, reportedly must provide explicit photographs with their face visible and showing themselves as the passive partner [R1.4].

In November 2010, the Turkish Armed Forces, or TSK, denied asking for "photographic" proof that people seeking an exemption from compulsory military service on the grounds of their homosexuality are actually gay [R1.3].

In 1996, the Justice Commission of the Turkish Parliament passed a Bill stating that people who conduct "unnatural sexual intercourse" shall be expelled from the army [R1.2].

It's practically impossible for Turkish men to avoid exposure to military life, and the burden is on them to prove they are unfit for service. Every man between 20 and 41 years old is required to serve at least six months. Exemptions are granted only under two conditions: a mental or physical disability, and homosexuality. Turkey does not recognize the right to conscientious objection [R1.1].

On 09 October 2012, the European Court of Human Rights ruled in favour of a gay Turkish prisoner who was put in solitary confinement after complaining about bullying from inmates saying that the conditions in which he was held constituted 'inhuman or degrading treatment' in breach of Article 3 of the European Convention of Human Rights and in violation of Article 14 of the ECHR, which protects people from discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation. The Court ordered the Government to pay the prisoner €18,000 ($23,300) in compensation and €4,000 ($5,200) in expenses [C2.3], [D1.2], [R1.1].